After a frustrating 18-ball 10 runs in the 1st ODI against Australia, India's ODI skipper Shubman Gill was seen having a detailed discussion with batting coach Sitanshu Kotak at the team's practice session on Tuesday, October 21. The Men in Blue collectively faltered and were handed a 7-wicket loss via the DLS method.
With the series heading to Adelaide for the second ODI on Thursday, October 23, Gill appeared to be very committed and reflective at the practice session. He was having a detailed discussion with Kotak regarding his batting approach and shot selection, which could be interpreted as a determination to come back strongly.
Shubman Gill’s record against Australia and unwanted captaincy streak
The 26-year-old opener has not been very successful against Australia in ODIs. In his nine matches, Gill has accumulated 290 runs at an average of 32.22 and a strike rate of 91.48, with one fifty and one hundred each.
After India's defeat in the first ODI, Gill, along with Virat Kohli, joined an unwanted list. He became only the second Indian captain to lose his debut matches in all three formats — Tests, ODIs, and T20Is. His T20I captaincy debut against Zimbabwe on July 6, 2024, saw India lose by 13 runs. In his first Test as captain, India were beaten by England at Headingley by five wickets after conceding a 371-run target.
Gill will definitely be looking to change the narrative of these two matches before the series wrap-up and is hoping to get the first victory under his belt as ODI captain. He succeeded the veteran Rohit Sharma. His overall record of ODIs has been excellent despite the recent troubles, 2,785 runs in 56 matches at an average of 58.02 and a strike rate of 99.28, comprising 15 fifties and eight hundreds, with a personal best of 208 against New Zealand.
